A hero builder has spoken of the “dramatic” moment where he risked his own life to rescue a woman from a flat fire in Erith.

Stephen Smith, who was on his way to visit his in-laws, noticed a woman “trapped” at the window of a burning flat in Britannia Close on April 4.

The 53-year-old knew he had to help the woman as he saw more smoke billowing from the flat.

He spotted that the woman was dangling out of the window and screaming for help, with the flames all around her.

Another man, who is unknown to Stephen, was already attempting to save her with a ladder from the back of the affected building.

Stephen explained: “I was stopped by my friend’s dad when I was on the way to see some family.

“We were just having a normal conversation, just catching up with each other.

“We then saw a woman trapped in one of the windows of a flat, and there was just so much smoke coming.

“Another man was already trying to reach the woman with a ladder, but he was struggling, so I decided to give him a hand.

“We climbed over a fence, and both stood on the ladder as it wasn’t long enough to reach the flat.

“The flames were directly behind her, so we knew we had to be quick.”

Stephen noticed the woman’s screams were getting louder as the flames were also getting closer to her.

He and the “mystery” man both braced themselves as they rolled the woman over a window and got her onto the ladder.

He saw that the woman’s trousers were completely burnt which also affected her legs and back.

Stephen explained: “Her trousers were all burnt, there was nothing on her bottom half, you can see she was all burnt very badly.

“She was just kept screaming, while being face down on the grass, she was in agony.

“People from the other side of the fence were giving us water to put on her just to give her a bit of relief.”

The woman was then treated at the scene for smoke inhalation by London Ambulance Service crews.

After describing the experience, Stephen said he does not think he is a hero, but he knew he had to do something to save the woman.

He added: “I could have never done it on my own, me and the other man worked as a team to save her.

“I still don’t know who he is, he was just a mystery brave man who wanted to help someone else.

“I guess you can say, we were at the right place and the right time.”

The fire is believed to have been accidental and caused by the unsafe disposal of smoking materials. 

A part of a three-roomed flat in a three-storey building was damaged by the blaze. 

Three fire engines and around 15 firefighters from Erith, Plumstead and Lee Green fire stations attended the scene.

Stephen hopes that the woman has “fully” recovered and in good health following the incident.

He added: “I still haven’t heard anything from her, I hope she has fully recovered.

“It’s a tragic incident to be in, so I hope she is ok.”